A Role Reversal
by Rosa Clearwater
Summary: In which a stubborn Mr. Reese and an obstinate Finch accidentally switch roles for a brief moment in life. (Season 1, Pre-Slash/Platonic Rinch)


AN: Ever noticed how our lovely Mr. Finch always takes it upon himself to go after Numbers as though he's just an expendable boss? While nobody on Team Machine is expendable, this is one of those stories in which we realize why. (It's season 1 pre-slash Rinch, sorry Careese fans.)

When Mr. Reese had walked into the office that day he hadn't anticipated Finch's response to his weak lie. He thought he had been subtle over the phone as he tried to hide a voice that was much hoarser than normal but he apparently didn't fool Finch for a minute. Even though he had managed to not harshly cough at all during their little talk the fact that Mr. Reese was rather ill did not manage to escape Finch.

John was so off-kilter that when Finch greeted him at the entrance of the library, already in irritated mother hen mode, John didn't have the strength to fight him.

"I am sorry, Mr. Reese, but I refuse to have you work any numbers in your condition." John could do nothing more than stare in response. It was at this moment Finch hurried forward to make sure his employee didn't topple over from exhaustion.

They made an odd sight trying to walk through the library. Clearly Finch was not as strong as he needed to be to help Mr. Reese but he was sure trying. John couldn't help but sigh when they finally reached the stairs.

"Finch," He muttered. The man ignored him as he attempted to start up the stairs. But John weakly placed a hand on Finch's shoulder, stopping him for a brief moment.

"Harold, I know you can't take much more of this." The tired geek paused for another moment at this remark before responding.

"You're right, Mr. Reese. How careless of me to forget." Finch snipped at him, uncaring of the physical pain this task cost. He was going to take care of John and Mr. Reese had no say in the matter. Harold did acquiesce by allowing John to use the railing for further support so it would be less taxing on the two of them.

When they did make it up the stairs Harold gently led Mr. Reese in an unfamiliar direction. They walked around for a few minutes before standing before a door John hadn't really paid attention to before. Yes, he had noticed it in one of his explorations of the library but Finch had called him away before he had a chance to inspect it further and so the mysterious door hadn't taken much priority in his mind.

Harold carefully open said door before flicking the light on inside the room. The room was small but not too cramped. It contained a bed, a chair, and a few books on a table nearby.

Finch immediately deposited Mr. Reese onto the bed before sighing in relief that they had made it. Both men were now drained of energy though both were still determined not to rest. There was a moment of silence as Finch fought the urge to sit in the chair and temporarily surrender to his own exhaustion.

"Please, Finch. Humor me." Came the response of the sick man to his obstinacy. Harold sighed for a brief second before allowing himself to plop into the chair in a rather anti-Finch fashion.

"Did we get a new number, Finch?"

"Regardless of whether or not we did receive a number, Mr. Reese, you are not going anywhere."

Which meant they totally did get a number Finch was just being stubborn.

"Finch" The normal growl of protest had lost its efficiency to strike fear into the listener as it came out as a pathetic complaint this time.

"I really am sorry John but right now what you need is rest not the possibility of injury." Finch forced himself out of the chair at this point before he turned to leave the room.

"I'll be right back with some medicine. Try not to move for once."

It only took a few seconds for Finch's gait to fade away; however, the pain in his limp was more evident than normal even to the bedridden man. John glared at the opened door and willed himself to attempt to get up from the bed.

So focused in getting up was John that he completely missed Finch coming back into the room only a minute later. It was only when Harold placed a hand on John's chest to stop him from the fruitless endeavor that John realized getting out of this was not going to happen.

"Finch," He tried again but allowed himself to be gently pushed back onto the bed. Liquid medicine was soon placed in his hands and he took it down with little complaint.

"Finch" He started once more as the world began to tilt a bit. He could hear Finch begin to leave the room to let Mr. Reese rest.

"Harold, please don't leave." At this point, he had to close his eyes as a wave of relaxation latched onto him. He felt the bed, not the nearby chair, dip a little with the addition of Harold's weight. John allowed himself to smile ever so slightly as he unconsciously reached out for Harold's hand and allowed himself to drift slowly to sleep.

Finch started a bit at this unexpected contact, now realizing the mildly compromising position he was now in. As much as he would've liked to continue holding John's hand, he knew he had to eventually let go if only for propriety. Besides, Harold was sure that if John really wanted to have human contact it would not be from him.

After all, it was only the fact that John worked for Harold that kept them in contact. They did have some sort of trust in one another but it was not as though their relationship was really anything more than that of mere colleagues. Harold was also sure that if John was to be interested in anyone, if his personal preference showed anything, he would be more interested in someone like Joss Carter and certainly not Harold Finch. Harold couldn't quite describe the unexpected pang he felt from that unspoken revelation but he merely shelved it for further reference.

Turning back to the man of his meticulous thoughts, Harold smiled ever so softly. While John did have a sort of sickly appearance about him it was nice to see the normally tense man peacefully asleep. It was a refreshing reminder that even someone plagued with a past like John's could still escape it in sleep.

Harold was unwillingly brought out of his thoughts when John stirred in his sleep. The former tried to get up but the latter's hand clutched his desperately.

"Please, Harold. Don't leave me." Was the muttered plea for help. Clearly he was in some sort of nightmare. Harold frowned at Mr. Reese's pain, knowing he would never willingly leave his friend. Yet he also knew that John would feel so guilty if a Number became a victim because they weren't working. At the sound of John struggling in his sleep, Harold decided to hold back on leaving his troubled friend.

"Don't worry, John. I will always be here." He said, and was suddenly pulled forward towards the troubled sleeper by John's hand. John reached out another hand and caressed Harold's face for a brief moment, as he began to visibly relax. Shivers of delight and surprise were sent down Harold and he held a breath in shock as the tips of his ears began to blush. Eventually the nightmare seemed to completely fade and John's breathing evened out once more and the caressing hand fell back onto the bed.

"I do apologize, Mr. Reese, but I know you'll understand." It was time to get to work. Although Harold's heart broke a little at leaving his distressed friend he had to push his own trivial emotions aside.

He would never be able to forgive himself if something happened to John. Yet he also could never forgive himself for refusing to help another human being. John wasn't the only one who was plagued by past demons.

And so it was with a burdened heart that Harold let his friend's hand slip from his grasp. For it was time to go and this time he had to do it alone.

AN: While there was a mentioning of Carter, she's not one of the main characters. This is Rinch-centric (even if it's only preslash) so it's really just the two of them. Oh and this won't be an incredibly long story. Yes, it'll probably be more than two chapters, but it's most certainly not going to have more than four.


End file.
